Where The Lines Overlap
by lanadeltigerscum
Summary: Just two years after her mother's untimely death, Megan DiLaurentis has moved back to Rosewood with her dad. He intends to defend Megan's cousin, Alison, in the murder of Mona Vanderwaal. When Megan reunites with her former friends, they're determined to prove Ali's guilt. But can they accomplish this when obstacles get in the way? (Rewrite of House of Secrets.)
1. Chapter One

Rosewood is home: it's where I experienced my first word, rode my first bike, and had my first kiss (and subsequent heartbreak). But the concept of going back is relatively chilling.

When my parents and I left town to move to New York City almost overnight years ago, it seemed like we'd never come back. I left behind my old friends and my old life, and for what? At the time, my cousin had gone missing. One may understand that reasoning, if it'd turned out she was actually dead. But no, Alison had been faking her death for the last couple of years. The tides had turned once again now, as she stood accused of a murder this time. It left me bursting at the seams when my father finally decided I would finish out my senior year of high school in Rosewood, anxious to see the calculating time-bomb that is Alison get a taste of her own medicine for once. As messed-up as that probably sounds, I know quite a few people who would agree that her being removed from society would be fantastic. Hell, others would go as far to call it poetic justice, and I'm very happy to be one of those people.

For almost my entire early childhood and adolescence, Alison used me as her whipping girl. Our little clique eventually grew to include four others - Hanna Marin, Spencer Hastings, Aria Montgomery, and Emily Fields. We were conned into doing her dirty work, and taking the blame for a lot of things we shouldn't have had to for our age. It took a big toll on us.

One of the worst offenses wasn't long before she disappeared, when Alison swore she'd seen Toby Cavanaugh being a peeping tom, and encouraged us all to build a stink-bomb to throw into his garage. We all tried our damndest to back out, but it was too late. Before we knew it, the house was in flames. It was the most frightening thing I've ever witnessed, only made worse when I saw who had been the true victim. Toby's stepsister, Jenna, had been escorted out by a crew of EMTs. We found out the next day that she'd been blinded. I still have a lot of guilt toward that specific incident, no matter how many times I've told myself that I wasn't the monster. Alison was. She even went as far as to make Toby take the fall. It was sickening, but that's just how it'd always been. I don't remember her ever being nice.

When my parents had told us we were moving away to New York City, I'd decided not to protest. Alison was out of the picture now, so it seemed. A new start in a new place could be what I needed. We were only gone for a little while, but it was nice to live a life where I could be a normal teenager. About six months after we moved, though, my mother fell ill. Nobody knew what was wrong for a couple of months - the word tumor flew around, but at fifteen years old, I still didn't quite understand the extent of how serious that was. She passed away with the two people nearest to her heart at her side; her husband of twenty years, and her only child. I don't think I'd seen my dad cry before that day.

It's early January now. A month has passed since my eighteenth birthday. Snow covers the ground around me, and the cold Pennsylvania air whips at me as I carry boxes over the threshold to our old house. It seems strangely hollow somehow, like a piece of it is missing. As I run my free hand over the sign that reads our names - Patrick, Jamie, and Megan DiLaurentis - I realize why. Mom's not here. The woman who kept the household afloat for twenty years is gone, leaving a huge void.

My thoughts were cut off by my dad appearing from the living room, holding up my laptop and charger. "Megan, sweetie? Where do you want this?"

I got up and followed him into the living room, my feet making soft thuds in the carpet. The house still looked just as we left it, telling me the obvious - nobody had lived here. Even our piano was still in the same spot, untouched albeit a few layers of dust.

"I'll take it," I offer, taking the items in question from him with a soft smile. "Thanks, dad."

He nods, pulling me into a hug. The father-daughter moment is, of course, interrupted by his phone ringing. Dad is a workaholic, but it's not really something I can be upset with him over. It's helped him through losing mom, and he's a damn good lawyer. One of the best in New York City when we were there, described by the Post as being "an asshole, but one who gets the job done". As stupid as it sounded to me, he reveled in that title so much I started to wonder if he'd published that review himself. This was a hard case for him, though.

From what I understand now, personal ones involving family did a number on my poor dad. He found himself torn between his reputation and his loved ones, especially here. All evidence points to Alison, but I know my uncle wants to believe she's innocent. Who would want to imagine that their daughter could be capable of killing someone? My dad, personally, would have a heart attack. So as much as I'd like to look Kenneth dead in the eyes and tell him exactly who his daughter is, and how evil she'd always been, I've decided to take the high road and keep my mouth shut about it. Shattering the illusion would make me no better.

"Sweetie, I have to go meet your uncle and cousin," my dad says, putting his phone back in his pocket. "Do you want to go with? Alison's missed you."

It takes a lot of restraint not to laugh at that, so I shake my head and try to come up with an excuse. "Actually, I think I'm going to go for a walk."

He nods, hugging me once again before grabbing his briefcase off the top of the piano and leaving. Once his car's out of the driveway and down the road, I lace up my snow boots and make sure I have my keys before locking the house and leaving myself. My first stop is to get some kind of caffiene in my system, and I'm relieved to see the building that contains the Brew is still there. As I step inside, though, I see it's also a bookstore now. Strange, but not surprising. The barista, a woman that looks to be in her mid-twenties, is busy. I take the chance to look around, spotting a specific book on the shelf. It's got a bookmark sticking out of it. Nobody comes to claim it from me, so I sit at the nearest table and open it up.

The bookmark has a typed-up message on it, almost looking like a letter. Reading it nearly causes my jaw to drop; it's written by Aria Montgomery, talking about how she regrets dating an older guy throughout high school, and how it's effected her teenage life. Hurriedly putting the bookmark back, I slam the book shut and place it way in the back of the shelf so that it's out of view. Yikes. It's probably best I did that, because the further it is from view, the better. That could get ugly. Besides, I'd much rather save Aria's ass than I would Alison's. Checking my phone to see if I've missed something from my dad, I realize it's three-thirty. Do I want to clear out before a potential after-school crowd flies in, or should I take my time? I decide on the latter, which ends up working to my advantage - kind of.

A chime comes from the front of the building, and I hear footsteps stop dead in their tracks a few feet away. I'm not facing whoever it is, so I wait to see what they're up to before I do anything else. As much as I hate to admit it, I stick out like a sore thumb. Anyone who doesn't know me could still pick me out of a crowd, and people of Rosewood can probably tell I'm a DiLaurentis. I've got the same blonde hair and bright eyes. The whole package.

"Alison?" a female voice sneers behind me, clearly not her biggest fan. That's when I stand up slowly and turn around, faced with Emily. Her disgust turns to excitement. "Megan!"

"Hiya, Em." I say casually, letting out a laugh as she pulls me into a hug. We weren't the closest of the girls, but I did get along fairly well with her.

"I've missed you," she remarks, finally letting me go as the older barista shoots us a look. "We all did. Thank you for coming back."

As much as I'm sure Em would love to stay and chat, the way the barista clears her throat helps me to realize she works here. I order a coffee to go before reminding Emily of my address, telling her she's welcome to stop by any time. I'm usually home alone, so it's not a big deal for me to have friends over. I did it all the time when we lived in New York. When I step out into the snow, I decide to make another trip before I go home. However, as soon as I make an attempt to use the crosswalk, a police car pulls up beside me with its lights flashing suddenly, rolling down the window. Making sure I wasn't about to jaywalk, I sigh angrily.

"Miss DiLaurentis?" a middle-aged woman calls out to me. The first thing I notice about her is her horrible perm, which is still highly visible from the corner of my eye.

Turning to face the car, already sick of being mistaken for my damn cousin, I shoot her a look. "Yes?" I say through gritted teeth, my expression leveling her.

She shakes her head, obviously mortified by the fact that I'm a DiLaurentis, but that I'm not Alison. I've seen that look before; the "oh, shit, there's two of them" look.

"I'm sorry to bother you."

"Yeah, it's no problem."

"Keep warm."

As much as I wanted to tell her to piss off right then and there, I knew it'd be a bad idea. Finally able to make use of the crosswalk, I head toward my intended destination. The cemetary is never usually packed, and there's no funeral today. So the emptiness doesn't shock me. My first visit is to my mother, who requested she be buried here despite the move. Almost instantly, tears threaten to fall as I kneel down to wipe snow away from the headstone. God, I miss her so much. If this had happened later in life, maybe it'd be easier. But aside from Alison, I'm the only person I know my age who's lost her mother already. It's unfair, but I know deep down that she'd be proud of the person I've become.

Next up, I walk up to a grave I never expected to have to see until I was an old bitty. Mona and I were good friends for a long time; her death admittedly made me more upset than when we thought Alison was gone. No matter how the girls felt about her, I really did feel closer to Mona. She was a wallflower who didn't have a lot of people, but she had me. We had each other, and that was enough. It killed me to leave her behind, knowing that her only friend was in me. And now she's gone, reversing the roles permanently.

I wipe snow away from her tombstone, too, thinking about the things she'd have to miss. Graduation in a few months, going off to college, getting married and having kids.. it wasn't fair. Alison took this all away from her. Yet there my dad was, ready to play Superman and keep her out of jail. Whatever the cause for his heroics, I needed to do something to prove to him she wasn't innocent before it was too late.


	2. Chapter Two

Now that I was back in Rosewood, it came as no surprise to me that all the girls had come over to see me later that evening, convincing me to go to another infamous Kahn party.

"So, was it Alison's new man candy who stopped you outside the store?" Emily asked me. She was sitting on my bed, going through my yearbook from my old school. Her perfume was stinking up my room horribly, even though she swore it wouldn't. The smell was a little too strong, but despite the burning in my nostrils, I ignored it. One thing I'd learned in dealing with Alison was to let the girls get away with more than I probably should. Because even though they had their flaws, I was no different and they'd never looked down on me for it.

"I didn't know she had a man candy," I replied, leaning closer to the mirror to make sure my earrings were actually intact. "It was a woman I talked to."

"It's one of the cops who came after you left," she said, flipping the page in the yearbook, holding it closer to her face to examine it. "After Wilden died, he came to investigate that. He's kissed Han, too. It's pretty creepy, because we think Alison's known him longer than he's been in town for."

"That's weird," I recall, getting a strange look. "But, she did tell me about meeting a guy the summer she went to Cape May."

"Do you think it's him?" she asked.

"Could be," I continued as I started to color my lips, turning the tube of lipstick slowly. "With Alison, it's hard to tell what's fact and what's fiction. She's always been a liar, Em, so with all due respect to Officer Cradlerobber.. he could be innocent. You never know. If it makes you feel any better, she's always had a thing for older guys. It could be anyone in Rosewood that's old enough to buy her and that Cece girl alcohol."

"Good point."

I leaned back at that, reaching for my hairbrush off the vanity. Running it through my dirty blonde hair, I nod. "Up or down?" I ask, feeling a hairtie smack me in the chest. "Like I said, you never know. But if it's really the cop she's with, you know how she is. She probably convinced him that she's the victim here."

She bit her lip, then nodded before ducking her head with a hurt expression she tended to get when we discussed Alison. I know she had feelings for her that exceeded friendship back in the day, but I don't know if anything happened with that. It wasn't my place to ask, so I'd sworn myself to silence until the day it came up. "Of course," she muttered. "I know that."

"Em," I said, sighing. "I didn't mean it that way. You know that, I just mean-" I paused, nodding toward my window. Alison had always lived across the street, so it was in the general direction I was aiming for. Without naming her, it seemed like the easiest way to get my point across to her without doing more damage than I'd already managed. "You know."

She nodded, but I knew she didn't really understand. Emily was one of the most sentimental people I knew, and whatever she was going through seemed to be a touchy subject. I hadn't asked, trying to avoid hurting her feelings the best I could. The way I mentioned her love life, despite being a past thing, seemed to allude to a possible break-up, though. As someone who'd never been a fan of serious relationships, the very thought of it made me itch. But I wasn't Emily. I'd pushed through my teenage life solo in that department, even if it meant going through some of my darkest moments alone. Even away from Rosewood, I'd kept my circle of friends relatively small. Being an all-around joiner wasn't my forte at all.

Admiring the handiwork I'd done on my hair, I watched as Emily turned up my speaker dock, filling the room with one of my favorite songs of the moment, Erase Me by Kid Cudi. I smiled, walking over to my closet, pulling open the door to go over my options.

"So, what do you wear for your first comeback party?" she asked, putting my yearbook back in its designated spot on the bookshelf. "I was thinking either black or pastel. Ooh, or maybe camouflague, just in case Eric Kahn asks you to play truth or dare and you need to disappear?"

"Personally," I responded, pulling out a pair of black pants and examining the waistband. "I'm thinking something dark and slimming with a bit of cleavage. And clean underwear."

"You wear that every night, though."

"Em, this is every night." I replied sarcastically. Picking out a dark red shirt, I wondered where the other one I chose disappeared off to. Someone must have been picking through my closet, since I kept it like I kept everything; neat and tidy. Since my parents had both been lawyers, the house was usually a mess, so my room had always been the only place I could keep the way I chose. Which was in order, perfectly organized, and with everything right where I could always find it. Some would find that obsessive, but it's better than being a slob.

"Not for everyone else," she said, causing me to glance back at her with a telltale smirk on my face. "I mean, they all still remember you. This is a big night for them, too. And they don't even know what to expect. They could be doing anything right now, and they don't have the slightest idea. No inkling." she added. Just then, I got a text from my dad, asking him to pick up his car from the police station. He would be late getting home, and didn't want to leave it there out of fear it'd get towed. Kenneth was going to bring him when they left the jail. I agreed, and was told to check with one of the officers to get the keys from them.

I gave up on looking for the other shirt I chose, pulling the red one on over my tank top. It fell off my shoulder a bit, but that was fine. As long as chest, midriff, and backside were covered, it'd passed the pre-purchase screening from my dad. I didn't even know what to say to Emily, no matter how right she was. Yes, it sucked having to face all my former classmates under such weird circumstances. But wasn't it better to just be brutally honest? Yeah, my cousin may have killed one of my best friends. That's not my problem, so let's all move on. Right?

Exactly.

A half hour later, when we'd walked the couple of blocks to the police station from Em's house, we saw Spencer standing outside, waiting for us. Hanna was late, as usual.

"Hey," I said, walking over to her. She was standing against the wall, having been there for most of the day with her boyfriend, Toby, with the exception of going home to change. She had a gas station soda cup in her hand. A smile came across her face as she hugged me.

"I'm going to go get my dad's keys," I add, shrinking back as a cold wind hits me.

"Hopefully Hanna shows up," Spencer said flatly, the tone she'd always used when she was deep in though. "It's too cold for this."

I nodded as the door swung shut behind me, headed straight for the front desk. Of course, the receptionist was on the phone, making what sounded like a personal phone call. She directed me toward a plastic orange chair to wait, so I shoved my hands in my pockets and sat, tapping my foot up and down against the concrete floor. It was irritating.

"Can I help you?" someone asked, startling me enough that I nearly jumped out of the chair. I glanced up from the floor, being met by a pair of brown eyes. "Sorry for scaring you."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "No worries," I said, giving him a reassuring smile. He offered me hand, and I reached out and took it, shaking it. "I'm just looking for my dad's keys."

He nodded, taking his hand back and pointing toward an office. Making my way to my feet, I gave the guy another once-over. In this case, it was really hard to keep from looking like I was full-on checking him out. He had one of those faces - the kind where it was hard to tell whether he was fresh out of college or closer to his thirties. Definite muscular build, which screamed gym membership. It made me wonder what he looked like without a shirt on.

Whoa, why was I going there? The possibility was very real that this could be the guy Em was talking about earlier. Before I could get away from my thoughts, the guy was dangling my dad's keys in front of my eyes playfully. Snatching them away, I tried my best to look annoyed. Despite my best efforts, it failed, and a smile broke out across my face. In the time he was distracted, I glanced around the office curiously. It was just as organized as my room, which made it my kind of place - even the open file cabinet was alphabetized and color-coded. A family picture sat on the desk, without a spec of dust even close to it.

For what it was worth, he didn't seem half bad. Emily had a tendency of exaggerating situations. Even if this guy was involved with Alison, she most likely had some kind of leash on him. The girls ought to know that, especially since that was a situation that belonged to us all through middle school, and most of the way through high school. But now we'd changed, not at all in the mood to take shit from anyone.

"By the way," the officer started in a flat voice, still smiling as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm Detective Holbrook."

Nodding, I couldn't help but smile back. As dumb as it was to yank the devil's tail like this, the inner teenager in me couldn't fight it. He was cute, and he was giving me attention. It was a tale as old as time, really. I felt a little bad for Alison that her boyfriend - or whatever the hell you wanted to call him - was ogling her cousin while she was in jail, but I knew Ali. She more than likely had a lot of replacements, if she wasn't already two-timing him. Or three-timing him. Monogamy wasn't her thing, either way. That was on Holbrook, though.

After a few moments of silence, I contemplated just walking out without telling him my name. My dad mentioned me to a lot of people, so I figured he already knew what it was. Especially if he'd already trusted the dude with the keys to his car. I gave him a small wave before heading out the door. Rushing so I wasn't standing in the cold, a sigh of relief escaped my lips as I realized Hanna had finally made her way over. Unlocking the doors from afar, I let out a small laugh as the horn sounded behind the girls, startling them.

"Hey," Hanna said as she climbed into the backseat, tucking her hair behind her ear. "What took you so long?"

I nodded toward the door. "I had to wait for some receptionist to get off the damn phone," I explained, throwing my arm up in annoyance as the other girls piled in. Aria and Spencer took the backseat beside Hanna, as Emily climbed in the passenger's seat. "Then some cop got the keys for me, and I got to talking to him." That was the whole truth. I had nothing to hide, unlike almost every other resident in Rosewood. My former aunt was one of them, something I'd found out a few months ago. Turned out she'd had an affair with Spencer's father before Jason was born, which made him the son of Peter Hastings - not my uncle.

"Holbrook." Spencer said, as if I was stupid for referring to him in the manner I did.

"You don't say." Hanna replied sarcastically.

"Sorry we can't all accidentally fall into his face." Spencer shot back, giving her a smug look.

"Hey, now!" I called out, causing the car to fill with silence as I backed out of the parking lot and jerked the car onto the correct road. Rosewood was small, so everything was all close together. The Kahns only lived a couple miles outside of town, which meant we could have walked. But in heels and snow, that would be the stupidest idea ever.

The cabin, where we'd always started out, really belonged to Noel. When the Kahns' parents divorced in sixth grade, they'd been left with the house. I don't know how they pay the bills or any of those things, but they somehow have enough money to keep the lights on for their house parties almost every weekend. The property was gorgeous, secluded by trees. A pond was near the end of the fenced-in property line, which was kept totally clean and used as some kind of weird jacuzzi. I'd only been in it once, back when you could call Noel my boyfriend. If that's what it was, I suppose.

We always split off into groups - Aria, Spencer, and I took off to talk to some of our friends from drama and scholastic bowl, and Emily, Hanna, and Alison always went toward the alcohol. It was silly, but none of us ever said anything. I wasn't introduced to alcohol until the night Alison disappeared, and I'd made it a point to never touch it again. It made me nervous, even now. I'm eighteen, but I'm also driving. One drink too many could be pretty dangerous.

"Watch it." Hanna said to Spencer, her arm jerking as she poured us all some drinks. There was always expensive alcohol mixed in with the cheaper stuff. Bourbon and vodka would sit next to each other, something I'd never understood.

"Bottoms up." Emily replied, downing her drink as the others looked at me.

Slowly, nervously, I raised the cup up to my lips and took a gulp, choking a bit as the warm liquid stung my throat. Sputtering and coughing, I hardly noticed when someone came up behind me and tapped me on the shoulder.

"I'll be damned," a familiar voice said. "Megan DiLaurentis." I took a sip of the drink again, a bit relieved as it went down smoother this time. Then I turned away from the girls and toward the voice. Noel stood in front of me now, a smile on his face. Whether or not we were anything more than friends, I'd known him my whole life. He was still a good person, at least to me.

"In the flesh," I said jokingly, pulling him into a hug. "How the hell are you, Noel?"

"I'm decent." he said simply, leading me off to a couch and sitting me down into his lap. A lot of people were checking in with me, seeing how I liked being in Rosewood. As weird as it seemed, being with Noel was actually kind of nice.

"Shit, it's almost my curfew," I said after a couple rounds of truth or dare, looking down at my watch in disapproval. "I'll see you later, alright?" I asked Noel, getting a nod.

Standing up, I rushed toward Hanna. She was plastered, and told me that she'd find herself and the girls another ride home. Annoyed, I decided not to question it and walked away from the situation, ready to go home and actually get some rest. I climbed into the driver's seat, punching the four-wheel drive on my dad's car.

As hard as I tried to stay onto the main road, the car still swerved a bit. I'd only had one drink, so it was the ice and not the alcohol that was making me slip around. Sniffling against the cold air that managed to spread through the car despite the heater being cranked, I jerked the car again. Except this time, I jerked it too far for my own good.

Then, I ended up in the ditch.


	3. Chapter Three

"That was 'Call Me Maybe'.. and just a reminder, we're under a winter weather advisory effective until Sunday, so make sure you're careful out there."

Jabbing at the radio's off button with my thumb to try to block out that rather ironic weather statement from the local stoner DJ, I rubbed my face where I'd smacked against the steering wheel carefully, trying to somehow ease the soreness in my jaw. Then I shut the vehicle off, bracing myself to brave the dreaded cold and make my way.. somewhere. I couldn't go back to the cabin, so that left me with walking across town. Great.

Realistically, I could have gone back to the cabin and asked Noel for help. The poor guy - despite the fact that he was a total sweetheart and I really didn't deserve it - would do anything for me. For how much he'd always held me up on a pedestal, though, I'd always been so cold-hearted to him. Taking yet another favor from him wouldn't be fair in my eyes. In a book Alison and I had read when we were younger called The Duff, I'd learned that despite myself, I'd been treating both Noel and Mona that way. But now that I was made aware of how short life really is, maybe it was far past time for me to change my ways for once. Though that meant risking my reputation.. but what did I really have anymore? All the DiLaurentis name truly had to it now was perpetual alcoholism and an alleged murderer. Or if you looked at the other branch, there was just Megan. Former homecoming queen, Ivy League hopeful, and best friend of the girl her cousin had supposedly slain. Yeah, that'd definitely gotten me some weird looks in public.

Once I'd walked a few blocks, I realized that I was definitely bleeding. I had no idea how, but there was no way I'd trek the extra two miles to the hospital to find out. My cell phone was dead, and my body was slowly but surely freezing up. After nearly giving up my entire faith in just about everything, I made it a couple more blocks before I saw it. Rosewood PD. Maybe it was a bad idea with them all obviously watching me, but at least I knew one person there that would possibly have my back. What would be the harm in showing up there? The wind nipped at me again, so I decided there was none as I pushed through the door, immediately coming face-to-face with the panicked receptionist.

"Hello, is Holbrook here?" I asked quickly, imagining that I must have been a vision with blood trickling down my cheek, my skin pale and breath short from treking half a mile in the cold, and (most likely) the outward appearance of a prostitute. But the woman just gave me a small smile, asking me to please sit down for a moment so she could page him.

As soon as she did, I immediately regretted my choice. "Megan?" he'd asked as he practically flew to my side, mortified by the blood trickling down my cheek. "What the hell happened?" When his hand came up to wipe away some of the blood, I felt a shiver go down my spine.

That was bad, very bad.

Letting out a soft sigh, I nodded toward the outside. "I was driving home from.. a dance class, and my dad's car fishtailed into the ditch about a mile and a half away. I didn't know what to do, so I just walked until I got here." As much as I figured he wouldn't buy into my bullshit lie, he fell pretty well for it. But not before fussing over me as if I was a small child, draping his coat over my shoulders and bringing me an ice pack before agreeing to get in touch with my dad. There was no way he'd yell at a complete stranger over something as silly as his car, right?

When he returned a few moments later, his expression calm, I felt a pang of relief. Of course, what he said didn't surprise me. "Your dad's tied up at work, but he said that he was going to call AAA to have the car towed and fixed. He was more worried about you, but I told him you were fine. Of course, you still need a way home," as he paused for air a little too long, I felt my eyebrow shoot up in a concerned fashion. "But as luck would have it, that's where I'm headed now. Ready?" he asked, offering me his hand.

Maybe I shouldn't have taken it, instead asking him to call one of the girls or my.. non-boyfriend, but there was no way I wanted to risk that when they believed I'd already made my way home, being the self-sufficient person I am. But that was bullshit, and I knew it at this point. Which is probably why I gripped his hand, slowly easing myself up. The warm was something I'd grown familiar with, so it was nice to step through the door and not feel the grip of arctic death on me. I was expecting to be getting into a police car, so my surprise when we approached a brand new Ford SUV must have been hilarious to Holbrook, who opened and closed my door for me before making his way to the driver's side, turning the engine and backing out slowly.

"Can you be honest with me about something?" he asked almost as soon as the car moved rather gracefully into the main road, the heat from both the vents and the seats almost rendering me into a comatose-like slumber. "I'm asking as a friend, not a cop."

So we were friends now? That was interesting, but instead of pointing that out like a smartass, I nodded. "Sure, go ahead."

Glancing from me to the road, he pondered his words carefully before approaching me, careful to wake the beast. "Were you at that party thrown at the Kahn house? We had a noise complaint or two tonight, and I just wondered if it was actually that loud or not."

Astonished at the fact that he'd figured it out that easily, I shook my head. "No, it wasn't too bad. I could actually hear myself think, if that counts for anything." I said, laughing lightly.

He chuckled back, the clicking of the turn signal disappearing for a few moments. It was strange to me how different he appeared from the person the girls had all made him out to be. I was expecting something along the lines of Kathy Bates in Misery. But he seemed like a normal guy, much unlike I'd expected. I made a note to remember that, just in case I needed a favor one day. With Mona's death and Ali in prison, part of me wondered if I was considered a target. In a sense that could only be politely described as realistic, I knew it was unlikely since I hadn't done anything as of late to rock the boat or piss anyone off. Though a part of me did notice that Noel had acted really shady and strange tonight, as if I made him nervous.

But that may have been the way I'd led him on when we were younger, and he could very well have been trying to exact his revenge. That was a gamble I wasn't prepared to want to take, no matter how tempting it seemed to try to figure out what his problem was. Suddenly, a hand in front of my face snapped me back to reality. We were in my driveway, and Holbrook had unlocked the door for me so that I could finally get out of the vehicle once and for all.

"Earth to Megan," he said playfully, watching as I shrugged off his coat and returned it to him.

Once I'd secured my phone and purse, I gave him a grateful look as I climbed out of the vehicle, carefully inching across some of the ice as I turned back to him. "Thanks for ride," I said softly.

He simply nodded, giving me a smile before watching me make my way up the steps and through the door. Upon plugging my phone into the charger, I decided to take as hot a shower as I could. When I stepped out a good half-hour later, I checked my phone for the battery percentage. It was still sitting where I left it, plugged in on my bedside table. But what I saw next took me by complete and utter shock.

"Hey, Meg!" the text started, sarcasm dripping from every word of the greeting. "Hope you enjoyed hanging with Ali's man tonight. Just remember, if you kiss, I tell."

Dropping the phone back down, I try to text back, but I get an error. For a second, I contemplate why. Then it hits me – the Caller ID says it's an unknown sender, which is something I'd never even heard of happening for text messages. Sitting against the door, I think of all the people who could have seen me leaving the party or at the police station. I can only think of one person.

"Noel?"

##

**A/N: Phew! First of all, I just wanted to apologize for how long this took and how short it sort of is. I've been working on some other projects that had to be done for clients, and am preparing to move in real life, so I just wrote this up and posted it so that everyone who wanted an update had one. Just for full disclosure – I know the chances of Noel being "A" are pretty much slim to none, but it seemed appropriate to throw him in as the jealous guy who has a crush on Meg. He will be a very significant part of this story regardless, though!**

**Thank you guys for your continued support and feedback. I'm so happy to see how many views I have. Though I'd love some more reviews to know how I'm doing so far, I still appreciate all the views I've gotten. Maybe one day Megan could be a legitimate character? That could definitely be interesting! Anyway, please continue to R+R. :)**

**By the way, how did everyone like my little nod to Robbie Amell (Eric Kahn)?**


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